Hardwood Floors February/March 2019

AT THE SITE

Squeaking, Popping, and Crunching Engineered Floors All wood floors make noises (or eventually will). It is part of living with a natural, organic product. A product that is hygroscopic and reacts to its ever-changing environment will likely move around throughout its service life and develop some sort of squeak, crackle, or pop. An occasional squeak within any properly installed wood floor system is not abnormal. These noises are not always a direct concern with the installed wood floor as long as the movement accompanying the audible squeak does not affect the performance of the installation. However, the fact that all wood floors make noises does not insinuate that they are supposed to, or that they have been manufactured to make these noises. Many squeaking and popping noises originate from the subfloor system below the floor. Some of the most common flooring professional is responsible for fixing unless we’re otherwise contracted to do so. One trend we have seen within our industry over the last couple of decades has been the movement toward

causes of a squeaky floor originating from the subfloor system include poorly nailed subfloor sheathing, missing joist hangers, missing nails or nails that just miss the joist, improperly installed subfloor sheathing, improper application of subfloor adhesive, and excessive shrinkage of subfloor materials. As wood floor installers, we often do our best to address existing squeaks in wood subfloors, but it is not normally something that the wood

engineered wood flooring. There are many reasons, but improved stability is one major factor. With improved stability, you would expect fewer squeaking, popping, and crunching complaints. To the contrary, one of the more common issues we have heard of through our technical call center is directly related to squeaking, popping, and crunching noises in installed engineered wood floors.

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